PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. – A group of curious and creative 10-year-olds is spending the summer building robots, learning to code, and discovering new passions at a hands-on STEM camp in Prince William County.
Held this at Mullen Elementary School near Manassas, the First LEGO League Camp gives rising fourth and fifth-graders a chance to build and program robots while learning valuable skills like teamwork, problem-solving, and perseverance.
“We’ve already seen so many of these kids say, ‘Hey, I’m really good at this,’” said Ryan Goetz, a counselor at the camp. “They really like the hands-on part of it. They can interact with the robots, interact with the mechanisms, and learn things like physics and coding along the way.”
The five-week camp is a pilot program that accommodates 30 students per week. Each week is held at a different elementary school, allowing students across the county to participate. We spoke with campers in week three, while later camps were scheduled to be held at Bristow Run Elementary, followed by John Jenkins Elementary in Dale City.
Students rotate through four activity stations:
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Innovation Station, where they invent a product designed to help others.
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Robot Challenge Station, featuring official First LEGO League missions that test robot attachments and movement.
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Design Station, where campers build custom add-ons for their robot base.
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Coding Station, where they program robots to complete tasks like navigating a maze.
Mae and Cucil, both 10 years old and entering fifth grade at Buckland Mills Elementary School, said the most challenging part is when the coding app glitches. “We’d press the button, and it’d just do its own thing,” said Mae. Their fix? Restart the app or turn the robot off and on again.
Despite the occasional tech hiccup, both girls said they want to keep working with robots when they grow up. “Because they’re fun,” said Cucil.
According to Goetz, that’s exactly the point. “You can’t learn everything from a textbook. These kids are learning real skills—coding, critical thinking—and gaining confidence in themselves.”
Organizers hope to expand the camp next year, offering more seats to meet growing interest. For now, a waitlist is in place as word spreads about the program’s engaging approach to STEM education.
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